There is a slight difference from the PP 00 01 policy, where if a spouse ceases to be a resident of the household during the policy period or prior to the inception of the policy, the spouse will still be considered an insured for the earlier of 90 days following the change of residency, the effective date of another policy listing the spouse as a named insured, or the end of the policy period.

The PP 90 01 Special Personal Auto Policy is more restrictive, having no such allowance. Therefore, a spouse is considered an insured under the PP 90 01 only while they are a resident of the same household of the named insured. If the spouse is no longer a member of the household and does not obtain other coverage, there will be no coverage.

The spouse will not be afforded coverage as a "family member" because, as discussed later, a family member must be a resident of the household.

B. "We", "us" and "our" refer to the company providing this insurance.
C. For purposes of this Policy, a private passenger type auto, pickup or van shall be deemed to be owned by a person if leased:
1. Under a written agreement to that person; and
2. For a continuous period of at least six months.
Other words and phrases are defined. They are in quotation marks when used.

Analysis

Similar to above, the policy includes standard insurance policy language and states that "we", "us", and "our" refer to the insurance company providing the policy.

The next definition makes it clear that a vehicle leased to the insured under a written agreement for a period of at least six consecutive months is considered to be owned by the insured and not the leasing company. The vehicle must be a private passenger type auto, pickup, or van. Since the vehicle is considered owned by the insured, he has an insurable interest in the property. An owned vehicle may differ from a short-term rental vehicle in the kind of coverage available.

D. "Bodily injury" means bodily harm, sickness or disease, including death that results.
E. "Business" includes trade, profession or occupation.
F. "Family member" means a person related to you by blood, marriage or adoption who is a resident of your household. This includes a ward or foster child.

Analysis

Bodily injury is defined to include bodily harm, sickness or disease, and death resulting from those. It is defined to make it clear what is covered by the policy. Mental injury or anguish is not included within the definition of this policy or the PP 00 01. If an injured party alleges that they suffered mental anguish as a result of an accident the insured is liable for, that is not covered by the policy.

Family member includes any person related to the insured by blood, marriage, or adoption who is a resident of the household. A ward or foster child who is a resident of the household is also included as a family member.

Not included as a family member is a roommate, significant other, or domestic partner of the insured to whom the insured is not legally married. The insured may consider the person as family, and they likely have access to the insured's vehicles, but they would still not be afforded coverage.

Endorsement Additional Resident of Your Household PP 33 37 may be used to provide coverage for nonfamily members of the household with the PP 00 01 Personal Auto Policy. A person listed in the schedule of the form is afforded the coverage provided throughout the form to a "family member." However, ISO notes that the endorsement is not available for use with the PP 90 01 Special Personal Auto Policy.

G. "Occupying" means:
1. In;
2. Upon; or
3. Getting in, on, out or off.
H. "Property damage" means physical injury to, destruction of or loss of use of tangible property.
I. "Trailer" means a vehicle designed to be pulled by a:
1. Private passenger auto; or
2. Pickup or van.
It also means a farm wagon or farm implement while towed by a vehicle listed in 1. or 2. above.

Analysis

Occupying is defined to mean in, upon, or getting in, on, out, or off. Since it is typically attached to occupying a vehicle within the policy, this means being in, upon, or getting in, on, out, or off of a vehicle. The definition is important because much of the coverage afforded by the policy is dependent on an insured or passenger "occupying" the vehicle.

Occupying can be complicated to understand, and courts have ruled in various ways on the topic. In Darno v. Davidson, 34 N.E.3d 967, Darno's vehicle stalled, and as he was pushing it out of the road with friends, another vehicle approached, and Darno was struck by it. Darno filed a UM/UIM claim under his auto policy. The insurer denied the claim, stating that Darno was not "occupying" the vehicle. However, the court found that "occupying" was an ambiguous term, and ruled that Darno was entitled to UM/UIM benefits.

In Lavoie v. Peninsula Ins. Cos, No. 2018-0711 (N.H. 2019), the insured was walking towards his vehicle to retrieve an item and was struck by another vehicle. The insured filed a claim for injuries, stating that he was "occupying" his vehicle because he was oriented toward the vehicle and his attention was also oriented towards the vehicle. However, the court determined that crossing the street to retrieve something for a customer was not "essential to the use of the vehicle" and that he was not "occupying" the vehicle.

In D'Amour v. Amica Mut. Ins. Co, 891 A. 2d 534 (N.H. 2006), the insured was considered to be "getting out of" the vehicle when she had unloaded groceries from her car and was walking around it to the sidewalk when she slipped on the ice and fell suffering injuries.

In Miller v. Amica Mut. Ins. Co.,931 A.2d 1180 (N.H. 2007), the insured had a policy on his primary vehicle but not on his motorcycle. The policy had an exclusion precluding coverage for any injuries sustained while "occupying" a motor vehicle he owned that was not insured under the policy. The insured hit a pothole while driving his uninsured motorcycle and was subsequently hit and killed by an unknown vehicle and driver. The administrator of his estate sued the insurer seeking a judgment that the insurer was required to provide uninsured motorist coverage. The court determined that the insured was not "occupying" the vehicle, and that the connection had been severed at the time he was hit, so the exclusion did not apply.

"Property damage" retains its typical definition, meaning physical injury to, destruction of, or loss of use of tangible property. A "trailer" is a vehicle designed to be pulled by a private passenger auto, pickup, or van. It includes a farm wagon or farm implement while being towed by a private passenger auto, pickup, or van.

J. "Your covered auto" means:
1. Any vehicle shown in the Declarations.
2. A "newly acquired auto".
3. Any "trailer" you own; or
4. Any auto or "trailer" you do not own while used as a temporary substitute for any other vehicle described in this definition which is out of normal use because of its:
a. Breakdown;
b. Repair;
c. Servicing;
d. Loss; or
e. Destruction.

Analysis

The policy states that "your covered auto" includes any vehicle shown in the declarations, a "newly acquired auto" (defined in the next section), any trailer owned by the insured, and any auto or trailer the insured does not own while it is being used as a temporary substitute for any of the previously listed vehicles. The vehicle must be out of its normal use due to breakdown, repair, servicing, loss, or destruction.

This definition mirrors the one found in the PP 00 01 Personal Auto Policy, but with a glaring omission. The PP 00 01 states that provision J.4. does not apply to coverage for Damage To Your Auto (Part D). This exclusion is not found in the PP 90 01, meaning that the Special Personal Auto Policy surprisingly provides broader coverage in this instance.

Therefore, any auto or trailer the insured does not own but uses as a temporary substitute while the owned auto is out of normal use due to breakdown, repair, loss, or destruction is included in the definition of "your covered auto" regarding coverage for damage to insured autos. Part D – Coverage for Damage to Your Auto will be discussed in greater detail in an upcoming article.

K. "Newly acquired auto":
1. "Newly acquired auto" means any of the following types of vehicles you become the owner of during the policy period:
a. A private passenger auto; or
b. A pickup or van, for which no other insurance policy provides coverage, that:
(1) Has a Gross Vehicle Weight Rating of 10,000 lbs. or less; and
(2) Is not used for the delivery or transportation of goods and materials unless such use is:
(a) Incidental to your "business" of installing, maintaining or repairing furnishings or equipment; or
(b) For farming or ranching.
2. Coverage for a "newly acquired auto" is provided only for a vehicle which replaces a vehicle shown in the Declarations, as described below.
a. For any coverage provided in this policy other than Coverage For Damage To Your Auto, a "newly acquired auto" will have the same coverage as the vehicle it replaced. However, for this coverage to apply, you must ask us to insure it within 14 days after you become the owner.
b. If Coverage For Damage To Your Auto:
(1) Applies to the vehicle being replaced, you must ask us to insure a "newly acquired auto" within 14 days after you become the owner if you wish to continue Coverage For Damage To Your Auto.
(2) Does not apply to a vehicle being replaced, you must request this coverage to apply. Any coverage provided will begin at the time you request the coverage.
If you become the owner of a vehicle that is in addition to any vehicle shown in the Declarations, you must ask us to insure it for coverage to apply. Any coverage provided will begin at the time you request the coverage.
For all coverages addressed in Paragraphs K.2.a. and b., if you first ask us to insure the "newly acquired auto" after the applicable time period has elapsed, coverage will begin on the day you first ask us to insure the "newly acquired auto".
L. "Transportation network platform" means an online-enabled application or digital network used to connect passengers with drivers using vehicles for the purpose of providing prearranged transportation services for compensation.

Analysis

"Newly acquired auto" is defined and describes vehicles the insured acquires during the policy period. These vehicles include private passenger autos, pickups or vans with no other coverage that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less and are not used for the delivery or transportation of goods and materials, unless that use is incidental to the insured's "business" of installing, maintaining or repairing furnishings or equipment, or farming or ranching.
Vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating over 10,000 pounds are generally commercial vehicles and should be on a commercial policy. The delivery or transportation of goods is prohibited except for situations that are incidental to the insured's business, or for farming or ranching. An insured using his auto to transport his vegetables to sell at a local farmer's market would not be disallowed.

A newly acquired auto can mean a vehicle that is acquired to replace a vehicle shown in the declarations or it can mean a newly acquired vehicle that is in addition to any of the vehicles listed in the declarations. The coverage provided and expectations of the insured changes depending on if the newly acquired vehicle is replacing a vehicle or in addition to the vehicles shown in the declarations.

For a newly acquired auto that replaces a vehicle shown in the declarations, the auto will have the same coverage as the vehicle it replaces, as long as the insured asks the insurer to insure it within 14 days of becoming the owner of the auto. This is a change from the 2006 version of the PP 90 01 form, which automatically included coverage on the day the insured became the owner of the auto.

If coverage for Damage To Your Auto (Part D) applies to the vehicle being replaced, the insured must ask the insurer to insure the newly acquired auto within 14 days after becoming the owner, if they want to retain Part D coverage. If Part D coverage did not apply to the vehicle being replaced, the insured can still request coverage for a newly acquired vehicle; coverage starts when requested by the insured.

For a newly acquired vehicle that is in addition to other vehicles shown in the declarations, the insured must ask the insurer to provide coverage. Coverage starts at the time requested by the insured.

The 2018 revision of the form states that if the 14-day time period has elapsed for the coverages addressed in K.2.a and b., coverage will begin on the day the insured requests insurance for the newly acquired auto.

Finally, the 2018 update also adds a definition for "transportation network platform", mirroring what is found in the PP 00 01. It is defined as an online-enabled application or digital network that is used to connect passengers with drivers using vehicles to provide prearranged rides for compensation. This definition was added in response to the growth of those types of services, such as Uber and Lyft. It is defined to clarify the scope of coverage, as it is addressed in the exclusions later.

Includes copyrighted material of Insurance Services Office, Inc., with its permission.